AFTER finally giving their fans something to shout about on Friday night, Liam Lawrence has urged Sunderland's players to secure further atonement for their season of shame when they face bitter rivals Newcastle at the Stadium of Light this afternoon.

A victory in the 137th Tyne-Wear derby will do nothing to prevent Sunderland's impending relegation to the Championship and will not even guarantee the club bettering their own record for the lowest points total in Premiership history.

But, in the fervent world of North-East football, beating the oldest of enemies would still represent salvation of a sort.

While Sunderland fans cherish the memory of successive 2-1 wins at St James' Park at the turn of the century, they are rather less willing to recall recent derby matches on Wearside.

The Black Cats have never beaten Newcastle at the Stadium of Light - the five games between the two sides have ended in three defeats and two draws - and you have to go back to April 1980 to find Sunderland's last Wearside win over the Magpies.

Twenty-six years of hurt exacerbate the calamitous nature of the current campaign - two wrongs that could both be put right with a victory later today.

"It's a massive game for all of the people in the North-East," said Lawrence, who scored his side's first equaliser as they twice came from behind in the reverse fixture on Tyneside, only to eventually lose 3-2.

"If we win, it will change the mood a bit. It won't make up for everything that has happened - nothing could do that after the way the season has gone - but it would put a smile on everybody's face.

"We know we owe it to the fans to give them something to shout about. A win over Newcastle would do that, even if it wouldn't wipe out the memory of everything that has happened before it."

While Grant Leadbitter and Chris Brown are the only native Wearsiders likely to start this afternoon's game, the entire Sunderland squad is fully aware of its potential repercussions.

The rivalry between the two clubs runs as deep as the coal seams that historically separated Tyne from Wear, and even the briefest of stays in the North-East is enough to reveal just how much today's regional skirmish means.

When full-back Danny Collins left Chester in October 2004, he was unaware of just how strong the animosity between red-and-white and black-and-white was. Within 24 hours of arriving on Wearside, however, all doubt had been erased from his mind.

"From the moment I joined Sunderland, it did not take long for the importance of the derby to sink in," said Collins. "I think the first person who came up to me said, 'If you do nothing else for Sunderland, make sure you beat Newcastle'.

"I've been driving around this week and every car in Sunderland seems to have a sticker in it saying some not very nice things about Newcastle.

"It's impossible to escape from it at any time - it's been especially hard to ignore this week. I've lost count of the number of people that have come up to me and said, 'Just make sure you turn the Mags over'.

"Hopefully we can repay that kind of faith. It means everything to the people up here and all of the lads are fully aware of that."

For once, Sunderland's players will even enter today's game in some sort of form. Friday night's draw at Old Trafford was insufficient to prevent confirmation of relegation but, by preventing Manchester United from claiming all three points, the Black Cats provided evidence of a hitherto-hidden resilience.

With Kelvin Davis finally living up to the exalted reputation that accompanied him to Wearside in the summer and both Collins and his likely partner today, Steve Caldwell, in their best form of the campaign, Sunderland sense a second shock could be on the cards.

After 16 home games without a win this season, how better to break the duck than with a long-awaited victory over Newcastle?

"It would be nice," admitted Collins. "Friday was a start - if we can win against Newcastle it will give the fans even more to hold on to. It's a big derby and a win would repay the supporters a bit for everything they've had to go through this season.

"Personally, I can't wait to experience it. I never got the chance to play in a Chester versus Wrexham derby, but I've seen a few of them and they're very, very tasty.

"Funnily enough, they played in the week and Chester beat them 2-1. Let's hope that's a sign and now we can make it a bit of a derby double by winning against Newcastle."

Despite his side's exertions on Friday night, caretaker boss Kevin Ball is likely to keep his changes to a minimum.

Skipper Gary Breen is a major doubt after picking up a calf injury at Old Trafford, with Caldwell, who made 37 appearances for Newcastle before moving to Sunderland two years ago, set to replace him.

Fans' favourite Julio Arca is expected to replace Daryl Murphy on the left of midfield after shaking off the hamstring problem that kept him out of his side's last two games.

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